In certain prior art systems that receive information from transducers such as the aircraft weight and balance system disclosed in Bateman, U.S. Pat. No. 4,312,042, operation of the transducers is modeled on temperature. Since each individual transducer has a slightly different response to temperature, it is necessary in order to optimize the accuracy of the signals received from the transducer to compensate each transducer's output signal for temperature. This is typically done by utilizing a fourth order polynomial. Before the transducer is installed, its operation is tested over a temperature range and by means of curve fitting techniques the coefficients for a fourth order polynomial describing its operation as a function of temperature are determined.
In prior art systems the normal procedure is to place the polynomial coefficients in the memory of the system computer usually at the time the transducers are installed in the system. However, this procedure has a number of disadvantages including the requirement that the coefficients in the computer memory be changed each time a transducer is replaced. Also, since in many cases it is necessary to enter the data manually, errors can arise in inputting the coefficients into the memory.